Britten’s setting captures Rimbaud’s hallucinatory imagery with astonishing precision:
Britten began setting Rimbaud's prose poems in Suffolk in March 1939 and completed them in the USA. The work was originally written for soprano , though it is now famously performed by tenors, starting with Britten’s lifelong partner Peter Pears in 1941. The cycle mirrors Britten’s own journey—an outsider moving through a strange, modern world. The Narrative Arc of the Cycle britten les illuminations pdf
Please note that some of these sources might require you to create an account or purchase a subscription to access the score. britten les illuminations pdf